I'd certainly have something against not allowing it, that would be called the First Amendment. It seems the US views any religion other than Christianity (and to an extend Judaism) with immense cynicism to the point that they seem to implicitly establish a religion. The debate over a Mosque at Ground Zero typifies this cynicism, and thus I would be critical of the efforts to oppose a mosque being constructed there.

The case to block the construction seems to just be an argument against A religion, not ALL religion. For a start to block the mosque on the basis that Muslims were responsible for 9/11 is ridiculous in itself. The perpetrators of 9/11 no better represent Islam than the KKK represents Christianity. Therefore there is no basis in that argument of those who oppose the mosque.

Let's see....do the people who want to build a mosque own or lease property near the World Trade Center? Do they pay their rent or mortgage on time? Is their mosque in compliance with all building codes, fire safety codes, and all applicable laws? If so, there's nothing we can legally or ethically do about it. We don't get a say in where they have a mosque if they don't break the law by having one. The 1st Amendment protects their right to the free exercise of their religion just like it protects yours and mine, or if you don't want to have a religion, it protects your right not to have one. You aren't obligated to like where people put up a mosque, but you are obligated to let them do it within the confines of the law.

I have 'something' against building a mosque anywhere on American soil. Islam is not a religion; it is a theocracy. Religion is only the shirt it wears. Muslims are the citizens of Islam. Islam is a foreign government. Muslims are foreigners who have a foreign mindset regarding cultural values. They actually believe that they must conquer the entire world for their god they call Allah.

For one thing, the First Amendment isn't just a good idea and it isn't just the law of the land: it's also a way to live life. It's a recognition that we should respect when others speak and worship. Of course we can disagree loudly, but we should be engaging with ideas, not people. We should be trying to change minds and hearts. We should be happy to have a diversity of opinion and ideas, because that diversity gives us strength. The more ideas that we have to interact with and test, the more concepts we can encounter and incorporate into our body of knowledge, the more we can adapt to new situations.

But I also support mosques and peaceful Islamic worship and outreach near the World Trade Center because bigots don't like it.

And I'm not just referring to Christian bigots or Islamophobic bigots.

I'm also referring to the other side.

al Qaeda, after all, didn't try to take over the World Trade Center. They blew it up. Their goal wasn't to conquer: it was to destroy. They don't want Islam intermixing with our society: they want Islam to destroy and dominate all opposition.

A peaceful mosque, representing the best of Islam, preaching tolerance and love, preaching freedom and reason, right near the epicenter of an action that symbolically and physically represented the opposite of all of those things?

Oh, yeah, I want that.

America is a city on a hill for a reason. We may be flawed, but we have an optimism and a tolerance at our best that is infectious. America at its best says, "Hey, come here and we'll make you more rad". My Muslim neighbor can go to his mosque, practice fasting on Ramadan, and live the way he wants... and then we can have a barbecue (with halal options of course!), talk about Breaking Bad, listen to some sick rock music, and make fun of the newest flop that hit movie theaters.

This is a culture that is at its best when it is inclusive, diverse and forward-looking. As the poem goes, "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" We take in everyone, we make sure they're safe and free, and we grow as a result. We recognize that freeing a new person from chains means that we get more free too.

Osama bin Laden may be dead, but I want every person who thinks like him to know, "No, civilization is better. Our civilization is so ludicrously sweet that we can take any religion, any education, any philosophy, and we can grind the best version of it out. Civilization beats barbarism, freedom beats oppression, love beats hate, peace beats violence, and there's nothing you can do to stop us, so suck it".